El Cerrico 2022

The white 2022 El Cerrico feels less reductive than in previous years, perhaps because they extended the élevage to 20 months. They like the reductive profile of the 2021, but they thought it was a little too much; and it took a long time for the wine to open up in the glass. They also harvested earlier. This is serious, mineral and precise, with vibrant flavors, a moderate 12% alcohol and very good freshness. A signature of their whites seems to be the salty, lip-smacking acidity and a stony, mineral sensation. It combines the oxidative and reductive character, making it complex and sapid, clean and terribly salty with the purity of a Puligny Montrachet. This is the style they wanted to achieve... There are only 1,400 bottles of this. They still age this in two 500-liter barrels (and some glass demijohns) because they don't have enough volume to fill a foudre, which would be their ideal in the future... It was bottled in August 2024.